The real surprise at the box office this weekend wasn't that Disney's Race to Witch Mountain opened at No. 1 with $25 million. The surprise, says Disney distribution chief Chuck Viane, is that although the PG-rated film was aimed at families with children, 18% of the audience was couples without children.

Nothing serves Hollywood better than a world on the brink. Look at the year in film. War and a full-blown recession haven't stopped moviegoers from plunking down $10 a ticket. Brisk business over the Christmas weekend pushed 2008 ticket sales to $9.5 billion within striking distance of the record set last year of $9.6 billion.

Running low on sequels and fresh off a $4 billion record summer at theaters, this was supposed to be a season of Hollywood rebuilding. But something strange happened on the way to the cineplex: Originality played.

Indiana Jones unearthed box office gold at domestic theaters with a performance that puts it on track to become the second biggest Memorial Day movie opening ever, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Indiana Jones unearthed box office gold at domestic theaters with a performance that puts it on track to become the second biggest Memorial Day movie opening ever, according to studio estimates Sunday.